Legislators talk taxes at Portsmouth chamber event

PORTSMOUTH — First-time legislators and veteran lawmakers alike gathered Thursday evening at the Sheraton Harborside Hotel for the Greater Portsmouth Chamber of Commerce's first legislative reception of the new term.

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By Joey Cresta

seacoastonline.com

By Joey Cresta

Posted Jan. 18, 2013 at 2:00 AM

By Joey Cresta
Posted Jan. 18, 2013 at 2:00 AM

» Social News

PORTSMOUTH — First-time legislators and veteran lawmakers alike gathered Thursday evening at the Sheraton Harborside Hotel for the Greater Portsmouth Chamber of Commerce's first legislative reception of the new term.

A number of important issues and legislative priorities, such as changes to the rooms and meals tax and a proposed increase in the gasoline tax, were topics of discussion as members of the newly seated Legislature had an early opportunity to mingle with each other and their constituents.

State Sen. Nancy Stiles, R-Hampton, took the microphone to give the full crowd an update on her proposal to change the rooms and meals tax. She said there is currently a $59 million cap on the redistribution of the tax revenues to communities, and she wants to see 44 percent of that amount go back to the communities where it was raised.

She said the current redistribution is unfair because it is based on population, rather than sending the money back to the communities that have to spend more on the infrastructure that supports tourism.

For example, Portsmouth spends $1.8 million annually to support tourism through its police, fire and public works departments, and Hampton spends $1.3 million, she said. While Hampton's population is just 15,000, in the summer months, it jumps to 150,000, Stiles said.

"The taxpayer picks that up," she said. "I'm really going to push this hard to try to get this through this year."

Stiles said the numbers may change as she continues to work on the bill. She provided a mantra that proved to be true for all the initiatives discussed Thursday night: "I can't tell you how it's going to end." Legislators said it is clear that much work is ahead of them, and they can't say now what legislation might look like by the time they pass it.

Laura Pantelakos, D-Portsmouth, had a discussion with Katy McDermott, executive director of The Chase Home for Children, about the devastating effects that changes to the Children in Need of Services law have had on supporting troubled youth.

"I have a bill that would put that (CHINS funding) back in," Pantelakos said. "We have to help these kids."

Lin Tamulonis, associate vice president of corporate and community education at Great Bay Community College, said she attended Thursday's reception to thank legislators for their past support of the N.H. Job Training Fund and WorkReady N.H., two programs that help the community college train a skilled work force that New Hampshire businesses need.

"I want to make sure our Legislature knows that we appreciate the support they've given in the past," she said.

The event was free, due to sponsorships by Pike Industries and Public Service of New Hampshire.